General Sir David Richards, Chief of the General Staff of the British armed forces, paid a secret visit to Israel and the Palestinian Authority on Tuesday and Wednesday as the guest of Israeli counterpart Gabi Ashkenazi, according to British diplomatic sources cited Friday by Haaretz.

Richards visited Israeli units using advanced military equipment and briefed senior members of the Israeli staff on British action in Pakistan and Afghanistan. The two sides also exchanged intelligence appraisals of the situation in the Middle East

Israel said it would like to return the visits but legal relief had to be put in place to prevent British lawsuits against Israeli officers. It also repeated the message that the report by the United Nations Human Rights Council alleging Israeli abuses during Operation Cast Lead could hamper British anti-terror efforts.